Philippines: Dengue vaccination program put on hold after new information

The Philippines Department of Health (DOH) announced today that they will will be putting the dengue vaccination program on hold following a preliminary briefing on updated information on the dengue vaccine, Dengvaxia, received from Sanofi Pasteur on Wednesday.

Aedes albopictus/FotoshopTofs

Based on the report, the Dengue vaccine has shown consistent and sustained benefit for those who were previously infected with the dengue virus.

For those who were not previously infected by the dengue virus, the analysis found that vaccination led to a benefit in preventing severe illness for at least 30 months. In the longer term, severe cases may occur following a subsequent dengue infection among those who were not previously infected.

Currently, there is no reported case of severe dengue infection among those who received the vaccine.

“The DOH assures the public that it is serious in carrying out its mandate to always guard the health and well-being of its constituents. Thus, it shall ensure that vaccines are always safe and effective to optimize its health benefits,” Health Secretary Francisco T. Duque III stated.

In 2016, the DOH launched the dengue vaccination initiative in three highly endemic regions (Regions III, IV-A and NCR) with over 700,000 individuals receiving at least one dose of the vaccine. This immunization program is in line with the recommendation of the World Health Organization for mass vaccination in highly endemic countries.

Dengue fever and dengue hemorrhagic fever are acute viral infections that affect infants, young children, and adults. It is transmitted by a bite of an Aedes aegypti mosquito infected with any one of the four dengue serotypes: Den-1, Den-2, Den-3 and Den-4.